Breathing apparatus



Dec 4, 1934. G. E. LEMOINE 1,983,475

BREATHING APPARATUS Filed Dec. l5, 1932 ven/valga:

patented Dec. 4, 1934 UNITED- STATES PATENT OFFICE AApplicaum Decemberis, 1932, lserial No. 647,488 In France December 31, 1931 2 Claims.

This invention has for its object respirators for protection against asphyxiating gases, the operation of which takes place in a closed circuit, that is to say Without any contact with 5 the atmosphere and in which purification of the air is ensured by a granular alkali peroxide such as one of the products called oxylith, the known oxyliths answer to the following denitions:

Oxylith S: peroxide of sodium Na2O2 activated by means of a catalyst (copper, nickel, manganese or like salt) with which it is intimately mixed.

Oxylith PS: sodium KNaO3.

Oxylith PPS: pentoxide of potassium and of sodium K2Na05.

These improvements eliminate to the extreme limit the resistance opposed by the regenerating 20 substance to the circulation of the air due to breathing and passing through it, whilst protecting this substance from the danger of spontaneous ignition resulting from its high sensitiveness to any sudden contact With saliva or condensed water vapour.

The accompanying drawing illustrates, by Way of example, a sectional View of the regenerator composed of four main elements:

1. The oxylith vessel;

2. The evaporating device;

3. The cooler;

4. The reservoir-pocket.

The oxylith vessel comprises a casing a, preferably of cylindrical shape, made of a wire gauze having close meshes, closed at each end by a fluid-tight cover b, and in which the charge of oxylith c is placed. The upper cover b is provided with an inlet connection d adapted to communicate, through a pipe, with the users mouth. 4,0 This connection d is provided, at the center of the oxylith vessel, with an extension constituted by a finely perforated tube f, the function of which is to distribute the air exhaled by the user through the regenerating substance. The evaporating device is constituted by a chamber e located above the perforated tube f and containing a set of sieves ggl subjected to the high temperature of the oxylith vessel, which temperature is produced by the disaggregation of the regenerating substance. The air coming from the users mouth is compelled to pass through the heated sieves ggl which perfectly ensure the evaporation of the particles of Water or saliva capable of causing, through a too rapid disaggregation, spontaneous ignition of the oxylith.

trioxide of potassium and of l5 (Cl. 12S-191) The oxylith vessel c is isolated from any conn passage through the oxylith and ensures its cooling. An opening k, closed by a plug l, serves to ll up or to empty the cooler i, and a cap provided with an orifice m obturates the cooler i at its lower part.

A exible storage pocket n ts on the cooler.

This pocket, the capacity of which must always be greater than the capacity of human lungs (about 4 litres 250) is provided with an air out let tube o having a connection p on which is secured the pipe sending back air to the user.

For ensuring the passage of air within the apparatus in the direction indispensable for its perfect purication, an exhaling valve q and an inhaling valve r are fitted at suitable places, the first before the pocket, the second after the same.

The operation of the regenerator takes place as follows: the user is provided with a iluidtight mask (or helmet) isolating his mouth, nose, and if possible his eyes from any contact with the external air which is noxious or assumed to be so. This mask (or helmet)` is provided with an air inlet valve allowing, before entering the noxious medium, to effect by a few inhalations the filling up of the reservoir-l pocket. A plug obturates this Valve at will. The mask (or helmet) is connected by preferably flexible pipes to the connections d and p of vthe regenerator. When the apparatus is in position andthe circuit thus closed without any contact with the noxious air, the pocket having been lled up as above stated, the user breathes the air of this pocket, which air reaches him through the pipe secured to the connection p of the tube o, after opening of the valve r. When the user exhales the air thus inhaled, the valve r closes and the air can come back to the pocket only by passing through the pipe leading to the connection d, this compelling it to pass through the evaporating chamber e and its sieves ggl, then fore arrives in the pocket n in a regenerated and cooled condition.

I claim:

1. In an apparatus for pretection against asphyxiating gases, of the isolating, closed circuit and oxylith regenerator type, the combina= tion, with the said regenerator, of a Vaporizing chamber mounted at the entrance of the regenerator, between the latter and the inlet conduit for the air to be regenerated, and, in this vaporizing chamber, at least one sieve adapted to be traversed by the air and to be raised .to a temperature sufficient for vaporizing the small liquid drops contained in this air by the heat evolved by the regeneration reaction,

2. In an apparatus for protection against asphyxiating gases, of the isolating and closed circuit type, an oxylith regenerator comprising two cylindrical concentric perforated Walls, a huid-tight bottom common to each end of these Walls, oxylith between these two Walls, an inlet conduit for the air to be regenerated, opening in the inner cylinder, a vaporizing chamber between this inlet conduit and the inner cylinder of the regenerator, and, in this vaporizing chamber, at least one sieve adapted to be traversed by the air and to be raised to a temperature sufcient for vaporizing the small liquid drops contained in this air by the heat evolved by the regeneration reaction.

GEORGES EUGENE LEMOINE. 

